The present invention relates to fastening devices for mobile telecommunication units and more particularly to a fastening device including means for coupling said device to the unit and means for fastening the device to a garment or a belt.
Fastening devices, usually called pocket clips, are routinely used to fasten a mobile telephone into a jacket or shirt pocket or onto the belt of the user.
A pocket clip generally has a body including means which cooperate with corresponding means on the rear face of the telephone to couple the clip and the telephone together. The clip also has a tongue which the user can depress to release the fabric or the belt. Thus the clip, when fastened to a belt, for example, is secured to it by the weight of the unit to which it is attached.
However, that kind of clip is an accessory that merely provides a telephone with the fastening function as just described.
An object of the invention is to associate the fastening function of a fastening device as defined in the preamble of this application with a second technical function which in the prior art is provided by a separate accessory.
To this end, the invention provides a fastening device for a mobile telecommunication unit, which device includes means for coupling it to the unit and means for fastening it to a garment or a belt, wherein the unit includes an orifice with at least one connector for connection to an external automobile vehicle antenna and the coupling means are conformed to cooperate with the orifice and cover the connector.
Thus the invention provides a replacement for the protective stopper that is usually placed in the orifice when the latter is not in use. This removes the need for the stopper and has a particular advantage for manufacturers, who no longer need to manufacture and supply such stoppers, and equally for end users, who are no longer distracted by worrying about losing such a small accessory.
In addition to the fastening function, the invention provides a function of protecting the RF connector from impact and from the loss of signal that could result therefrom if the orifice were open when not in use. Also, because the coupling means of the invention cooperate and cover the RF connector, the latter is also hidden, which improves the appearance of the device and adds to its commercial success.
In an embodiment, the connector is a plug and the coupling means include a coupling sleeve.
In an embodiment, the coupling means include a plurality of arcs along the perimeter of a circle.
An embodiment of the device of the invention includes a branch adapted to be coupled to the unit by said coupling means and a branch adapted to be fastened to a garment or a belt by said fastening means, the two branches are connected at a common first end, and the second end of the branch adapted to be coupled to the unit is free and has coupling means on its outside face.
In an embodiment, the construction and the shape of the free end of the branch adapted to be fastened to a garment or a belt are such that it can exert a clamping force in the other direction when a garment or a belt is introduced between the two branches.
In an embodiment, the branch adapted to be coupled to the unit is shorter than the branch adapted to be fastened to a garment or a belt, the two branches are substantially parallel over a common length and the remaining portion of the longer branch as far as its free end is curved towards the other branch so that said free end is in substantially the same plane as the shorter branch.
In an embodiment, in order to accentuate said clamping force, the free end of the branch adapted to be fastened to a garment or a belt includes means for reducing the gap between that end and the rear face of the unit when the fastening device according to the invention is coupled to the unit. For example, the means for reducing the gap consist of projecting portions on the inside face of the branch adapted to be fastened to a garment or a belt and conformed to contribute uniformly to the clamping force.
An embodiment of the device of the invention includes means for securing said device to the unit.
In an embodiment, the holding means consist of a rigid collar adapted to surround an external antenna of the unit.